University News

Student Engineers Will Compete at U of M Conference March 31-April 1
For release: March 20, 2006
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The Herff College of Engineering at the University of Memphis will host the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Deep South Regional Conference on Friday and Saturday, March 31-April 1. The conference and competition are for student ASCE members from universities in Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas and western Tennessee.

A Steel Bridge Building Contest will be held March 31 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the U of M's University Center. Teams from each university will build 25 ft.-long steel bridges than can support up to 2,500 pounds, roughly the weight of a small car. The teams design their bridges at their home campuses, then break them down into 3-ft. sections for reassembly in Memphis. Each team is judged on how long its takes to reassemble their bridge, the weight of the bridge, and its ability to support the 2,500 pounds without deflecting.

Concrete Canoe Races will be held April 1 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 1-5 p.m. at Southwest Tennessee Community College's Macon Cove Campus. Teams will design and build a 15- to 20-ft. long concrete canoe weighing 100 pounds or less. Each canoe must pass a "swamp test," proving that it can float even when filled with water. Teams that pass the test will compete in men's and women's 600-yard endurance races in the morning and 100-yard sprint races in the afternoon.

The University of Memphis ASCE student chapter raised $3,000 from ASCE members throughout Tennessee so students from hurricane-damaged schools along the Gulf Coast would be able to attend the conference free of charge.

For more information, contact Dr. Roger Meier by phone at 901-678-3284 or via email at rwmeier@memphis.edu.